Meet the students graduating from high school and college at the same time

These Gloucester County students didn't set out to earn a college degree at the same time as their high school diploma. Not at first, anyway.

They started out taking a few credits -- maybe a high school course that counted for college credit, or an elective college course that wasn't offered at the high school.

As they racked up the credits, they began to realize how close they were to an extraordinary goal: Graduating from high school and community college at the same time.

"I didn't want to be taking all these classes for no reason," said Alyssa Grassie, one of six students who graduated from Rowan College at Gloucester County last week and will finish high school later this spring. "I wanted to have a goal, and my goal was to get an associate's degree at 17, before I graduate high school."

Grassie, 17, who attends Gloucester County Institute of Technology, was automatically enrolled in dual-credit courses during her sophomore year, ones that were taught at the high school but counted for college credit.

Her parents, who hadn't gone to college, encouraged her to keep going: We'll pay for it, they told her; just go and do your best.

So this year, Grassie, who lives in Mullica Hill,  took high school courses at GCIT in the morning and college classes at RCGC at night.

"I would just come home from class every day, and I would have so much for high school and for college," Grassie said, "and my mom would keep encouraging me, telling me that 'I know it's hard now, but it's worth it in the long run.' "

Having strong support is one of the common factors among these high-achieving students. They also wanted to get ahead in college, to get general education courses out of the way, and to learn more about the fields they're interested in.

Of course, there's also motivation and work ethic.

"It takes a special kind of dedication that I see in these high school students," said Brenden Rickards, the dean of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics at RCGC.

Rickards helped convince Grassie that she could get the associate's degree while still in high school — a goal he would recommend for only one or two high school students for every 100 he sees. "It just takes a whole other level of commitment to actually complete a degree at the same time you're in high school."

Anastasios William Kalfas, 18, a Kingsway Regional High School student from Woolwich, was inspired to take RCGC courses because his AP science classes conflicted with electives he wanted to take, such as public speaking. Colleen Brown, a GCIT student from Gibbstown, said the college classes put her ahead of other students.

"I've always tried to get ahead," said Shelby Johnson, 18, of Mantua, another GCIT student and first-generation college student. "I don't know, I feel like I've fast-tracked my life."

Johnson also started slowly, but then decided to take advantage of summer school and then dove into a full set of six college classes this fall, which she doesn't recommend — "It was a humongous load."

It was weird to never step foot into a high school classroom during her senior year, she said.  She now has a job with a small civil engineering firm, which has agreed to mentor her as she pursues bachelor's and master's degrees from Drexel University.

Rickards said a major benefit for the high school students is getting to explore a field without committing to that major. When students change majors in college, it can delay graduation and add to the price tag.

Community college also gave Johnson another experience: Being the only woman in the room.

"I was actually the only girl in any of my engineering classes," she said. Instead of being intimidated — a first-generation college student, the only female student, the youngest student in the class by far — she felt empowered: "It was definitely an ego boost. It helped me get through the six courses I took in one semester."

For two of the students, Katherine and Elisabeth DellaRova, of Woodbury, just being in the classroom was a new experience: They had been homeschooled their entire lives.

"The first day I walked in, I had to figure out where I wanted to sit," Elisabeth DellaRova said. "The first time, I just sat by myself in the back, because I don't know — where's normal to sit? You don't want to sit in the back, because that's where the bad kids sit?"

She and her twin sister quickly fell into a routine. "The first semester, everything was very new and exciting," Katherine DellaRova said. "And then the second semester, it's just like, 'OK, I'm over it now.' "

"The transition to a university in the fall will be a lot easier now that I have all these credits and this experience," she said. "I'm really glad that I got my associate's, because I think it just gets me even more of a head start on college, now that I have a whole degree out of the way."